I recently had the honor of dipping my toes into and scrubbing my arms with the salts along the shores of the Dead Sea—the lowest point on Earth, nestled between Israel and Jordan. It’s a phenomenon of many sorts, but mainly because it has no fish, no algae, no growing things living inside of it. Nothing can survive in this water because it provides no nutrients for life. While you can float in it making no effort at all, that’s about all this gorgeous, salty body of water can provide.

Pretty on the outside, dead on the inside—the Dead Sea is expected to shrivel up to nothing by about 2050. 

Now take a leap with me from the shores of the Dead Sea to the shores of Pensacola Beach, Florida. My hometown boasts equally gorgeous turquoise water. Its white, sandy beaches remind me of the salts of the Dead Sea, but there is one major difference here. When you dip your toes into the edge of the water, you may feel little nibbles of pinfish swimming by. If you look out along the horizon, you’re likely to see the backs of dolphins riding along the ocean’s edge. People dive into the water headfirst and float on rafts all while the waves crash down beside them. 

Pretty on the outside, alive on the inside—Pensacola’s Beach’s tide flows in and out every day as a sign of life that is dependent on the sun. 

Which body of water best describes you?

God gave every one of us bodies, minds, and hearts designed with a purpose. Understanding God’s Word better, His plan not just for us as individuals but for His creation as a whole, should bring about signs of life and living water running through us. Despite what we present on the outside, the goodness of God and His design for each of us should be running throughout our innermost being. 

Understanding God’s Word better, His plan not just for us as individuals but for His creation as a whole, should bring about signs of life and living water running through us.

While I mean no disrespect to my new favorite place on Earth, I’d best describe a “Dead Sea” person as this: something like an ungrateful curmudgeon who feels like a victim to his or her times—salty, producing no fruit, and anything that goes near it won’t be able to thrive (or even survive).

I’d best describe a “Pensacola Beach” person as this: a grateful, plentiful, warm body who welcomes others to come live their best lives near him or her so that they can not only thrive, but know the One who provides the living water.  

How would the people in your life best describe you?

It’s predicted the Dead Sea will dry up in the next 20 to 30 years due to the water level falling below the salt layer, leaving only a salty core. 

Where will you be in 20 to 30 years from now?

The Living Water

Fortunately, Jesus is able to revive our salty hearts! In fact, He taught a truth that should bring tremendous comfort to those who feel they’re shriveling up and not thriving: God is the provider of living water.

God is the provider of living water.

You may recall the story of the woman at the well. She stood before Jesus, filled with a salty heart, seeking lifeless water when the giver of streams of living water stood before her. 

Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” The woman said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?”

Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life” (John 4:10–14).

A Spirit of Gratitude

One of the most beautiful truths about Jesus is that today, so long as you open your eyes and take in a deep breath, you can ask to be filled with streams of living water. No longer do you have to pull from a salty well that doesn’t satisfy, but you can start life anew. Even if you’ve fallen away from God’s Word, His life-giving Scripture can ignite your heart.

No matter where you are today, be encouraged. Scripture assures us that even the Dead Sea will thrive again. 

Then he said to me, “These waters go out toward the eastern region and go down into the Arabah; then they go toward the sea, being made to flow into the sea, and the waters of the sea become fresh. And it will come about that every living creature which swarms in every place where the river goes, will live. And there will be very many fish, for these waters go there and the others become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes” (Ezekiel 47:8–9, NASB).

I’m confident that the difference between a salty life and a thriving one is a spirit of gratitude for all that the Lord has given us. Take a look around today, especially in this Thanksgiving season, and realize that there is nothing there by chance. Your life has a God-given purpose!

About the Author

“If God is holy, I’m in trouble.”

This was the uncomfortable realization my Jewish friend and colleague, Marty, came to when he was 12 years old. To assuage his concern, Marty went to his grandfather for counsel. 

“When you go to the High Holy Days services on Yom Kippur,” Marty asked, “how do you know your sins are forgiven?” His grandfather couldn’t answer the question. 

Marty went to his father and asked him the same question. His father replied, “Well, we kind of hope so.” 

These unsatisfactory answers troubled Marty. He became even more troubled later on, just before his Bar Mitzvah at the age of 13.

The Hopelessness of ‘I Hope So’

It was Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. As usual, the Orthodox synagogue was full of Jewish people who had come together on the most solemn day in the Jewish calendar. They believed it was the day when God sat in judgment and determined whose sins would be forgiven and their names sealed in the Book of Life for another year. 

Marty was present at the services. He couldn’t help but notice an elderly gentleman he didn’t know just a few rows in front of where he was sitting. Marty was amazed at the religious earnestness of this man. The man was praying from the prayerbook, weeping, and striking his chest. As Marty looked on, he thought to himself, “This man, who knows the Hebrew, knows the ritual, and knows the ceremony, surely he must know that he’s forgiven.” 

“Sir, do you know if your sins are forgiven?” 

“Sonny, I only hope so.”

As soon as the service was over, Marty eagerly went to the man and asked, “Sir, do you know if your sins are forgiven?” 

The man, still with tear-stained eyes, looked at Marty and confessed, “Sonny, I only hope so.”

Marty was flabbergasted. “If this highly religious and observant man doesn’t know if his sins are forgiven,” he concluded, “what chance do I ever have of knowing this!” Disillusioned, he walked away.

Marty’s experience is not unusual. Today, because there’s no longer a Jewish Temple in Jerusalem, there are no longer substitutionary blood sacrifices or the sending away of the scapegoat, which happened on Yom Kippur in biblical days. Instead, after the destruction of the Temple in AD 70, the rabbis said that people can atone for sin through prayer, repentance, and good deeds. Therefore, when Jewish people go to the synagogue today for Yom Kippur, all they can do is beat their breasts as they read a list of sins in a prayer book and then walk away, never knowing for sure if their sin has been atoned.

One Mediator

Making matters worse, Jewish people today have no one to intercede or mediate on their behalf before God. In biblical times, the high priest acted as the intermediary between Israel and God, particularly on the Day of Atonement. It couldn’t just be anybody. God made it clear that the only mediator that could intercede for all of the people on this day was the high priest that God had ordained and him alone (Leviticus 16:32).

With the destruction of the Temple in AD 70, however, the Levitical priesthood ceased functioning, and so did the office of high priest. Rabbinical Judaism today gets around this problem by affirming that, unlike Christianity, Judaism does not need a mediator. Yet Scripture affirms that “there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all” (1 Timothy 2:5–6).

The writer of the epistle to the Hebrews speaks much of this one Mediator. He proclaims that God has, in fact, not left us bereft of a High Priest. On the contrary, “we have a great High Priest” who is “merciful and faithful” and came to Earth as a man “to make propitiation for the sins of the people” (Hebrews 2:17; 4:14). This person is none other than “the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus” (3:1). 

The Superior High Priest

Using Psalm 110, a Messianic psalm, the writer of Hebrews reveals that Jesus’ priesthood, being of the order of Melchizedek, is superior to the priesthood order of Aaron (7:21). Here’s how. 

Levitical priests needed large numbers. The Messiah’s priesthood needed only one priest (7:23–24).

Levitical priests died. Jesus lives forever (7:23–24).

A Levitical priest’s atoning ministry would be temporary due to the priest’s death. Jesus is able to save forever because He always lives to intercede (7:23, 25).

The high priest exchanged only his clothes to provide atonement. Jesus exchanged His glory to provide salvation (Leviticus 16:4; Hebrews 2:9,14, 17; Philippians 2:5–7).

Levitical priests needed to offer sacrifices for themselves. Jesus was sinless and needed no sacrifice for Himself (Hebrews 7:26–27).

Levitical priests always had to stand while ministering because their work was never finished. Jesus sat down at the right hand of God because His atoning work was completed (10:11–12; 1:3; 8:1).

The point of the writer of Hebrews is this: The Levitical priesthood was deficient in that it could never provide lasting atonement from sin. A superior priesthood was needed, one fulfilled in Jesus the Messiah (7:11).

“Jesus is our Savior—the ultimate atonement, accomplished through the ultimate High Priest, at a price of ultimate sacrifice.

What Marty didn’t know when he was 12 years old is that Yom Kippur is really the story of the Messiah’s final atonement. Jesus is our substitutionary, once-for-all-time sacrifice (Isaiah 53:11) whose blood is sprinkled in the heavenly holy of holies (Hebrews 9:12). Jesus is our scapegoat who takes away our sins (1 John 3:5). And Jesus is our High Priest who always lives to save us (Hebrews 7:25).

Jesus is our Savior—the ultimate atonement, accomplished through the ultimate High Priest, at a price of ultimate sacrifice.

Marty discovered this later on in life and believed in Jesus as his Messiah and Savior. I wish I had been there to tell him when he was 12, when he was yearning to know how he could be sure his sins were forgiven forever. But now he knows.

The question is, do you?

About the Author

This past April we took our youth group to a camp in northern Israel, just next to the Sea of Galilee, to teach them about the life and teachings of Jesus as He ministered in this very region.

One of the most famous events in the New Testament took place when Jesus walked on water and Peter tried to walk across the sea to Him—unsuccessfully (Matthew 14:22–33). I felt blessed to teach our youth about this event. Why? Because I had the chance to gain some new insight concerning this miraculous moment, which I now want to share with you.

As we read how Jesus walked on the water and rescued Peter, we see the main purpose of the passage is to show Jesus’ divinity. He is God. How do we know that? Just look at the disciple’s response to His miracle: “Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, ‘Truly You are the Son of God.’” They saw Jesus’ control over the wind and the sea, not just by silencing them, but also by breaking the laws of nature (and no, He was not walking on shore; He was in the middle of the sea!). Their reaction was appropriate, and it was an expression of worship. 

But something important happened just before that. The disciples were in a boat, in the middle of a storm (if Peter the fisherman was distracted by the waves, it was probably a pretty big storm), in the middle of the sea. The sea of Galilee may not be very big, only about 21 kilometers (13 miles) long and 13 kilometers (8 miles) wide; but as someone who has swum there more than once, I know how easy it is to drown there. It was dark, just before morning; and the disciples were exhausted, frustrated, and afraid. Then Jesus came walking on the water; and after realizing it was Jesus, the first thing Peter did was ask Jesus to command him to come to Him walking on the water. 

I think that most of us usually have the tendency to remember Peter’s lack of faith when he was distracted by the waves and began to drown, but how many of us would dare to go out of a rocking boat, trying to walk on water when it’s dark and stormy? Maybe we would dare to put one foot out, and then think about it all over again and conclude that it would be wiser to stay on the boat. 

Now when I read these verses, I always think to myself, What in the world was Peter thinking? Why did he want to leave the only relatively safe place around him? 

There isn’t an obvious answer in these verses, but the only logical explanation I can see is that Peter thought that being with Jesus on water was safer and better than being on a rocking boat without Him. The boat was an illusion of safety, but Jesus’ presence was actual safety, and this is where Peter wanted to be. 

Peter thought that being with Jesus on water was safer and better than being on a rocking boat without Him.

This boat can resemble many things in life that we think will keep us safe or will help us through the storm: people, family, money, savings, institutions, property, and probably many more things you can think of in which you might place your trust besides Jesus. Standing with Jesus, on the other hand, is knowing the Word of God, believing it, and living it out (Matthew 7:24–27). 

Sometimes the boat withstands the storm, but sometimes the wind and the waves can easily break the boat. One thing the elements can’t do is overcome Jesus. He has power and authority over the wind and sea, just as He has authority over our lives and everything we face. Most of us probably know that, but do we really believe that? How is this belief expressed in our lives? Do we really put our trust in Him? What does that look like? 

When we face death in the family, do we trust in God’s sovereignty, or do we put our trust in people and material things to comfort us? 

When we experience a crisis, do we trust our own wisdom? Do we trust psychologists? Do we put our trust in people, or do we trust God and His Word to guide us and bring peace and change? 

May we all see the truth—Jesus is where life is. We should strive to put our trust in Him and not in what we have in this world.

About the Author

When the apostles first proclaimed the gospel message, they encountered two different audiences, Jewish and Gentile. The book of Acts records those encounters and the emphases in the content of the messages. Peter had the privilege of preaching the first gospel message to a Jewish audience on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:14–41). He connected the unusual experiences of the Spirit-filled believers to the Old Testament prophecies in Joel to explain the establishment of a new era because of Jesus’ redemptive work. Further, he quoted from Psalm 16 to verify that the resurrection of Jesus was foreknown. He also established the Messianic Lordship of Jesus by quoting from Psalm 110.

In so doing, Peter communicated that the pouring out of the Holy Spirit and the offer of forgiveness in salvation was a continuation of God’s plan for the Jewish people. His message was for “the house of Israel” (Acts 2:36), and he stated clearly, “For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call” (v. 39). The response was remarkable. About 3,000 Jewish people welcomed the message, were baptized, and thus added to this newly formed spiritual community, the church.

Jewish People: First to Be Blessed

Peter’s next message also addressed a Jewish audience gathered in response to the miraculous healing of a paralyzed man (3:1–10). Again, he connected the event to the Old Testament prophecies concerning Jesus, in whose name the miracle was accomplished (vv. 13–16). Moses prophesied concerning Jesus and so did all the prophets (vv. 22–24), to whom the Jewish people are related. The Abrahamic Covenant also joins them to Jesus and provides the blessing of restoration to God available in Him (v. 25). Peter also declared that the Jewish people are first to receive this blessing (v. 26). As new as this message seemed to be, it declared the fulfillment of God’s plan for His Chosen People.

This second message raised a difficult issue with respect to the timing of “the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began” (v. 21). Peter promised “times of refreshing” and the return of Jesus in response to their repentance (vv. 19–20), which also has Old Testament prophecy to support it (Zechariah 12:10—13:1). In view of many Jewish people previously repenting and then another large number doing so (Acts 4:4), would this bring about the promise Peter declared? No! The repentance required is a national repentance demonstrated by the Jewish leaders, not the general population, which did not occur, as indicated by the arrest of Peter by the Jewish authorities and their persecution of them (4:3, 5–22).

For the Jewish people, the proclamation of the gospel continued God’s plan for them as His Chosen People to bring them spiritual blessing, the restoration of their relationship with God.

Even this rejection of Jesus and continuing hostility toward His followers was prophesied (Psalm 2:1–2), which encouraged the believers as they gathered in response to the treatment of Peter and John (Acts 4:23–31). They understood all the events as God’s predestined plan and were confident of His work on their behalf (v. 28). For the Jewish people, the proclamation of the gospel continued God’s plan for them as His Chosen People to bring them spiritual blessing, the restoration of their relationship with God. The other aspects of God’s plan for them await fulfillment, but they are guaranteed that they will be.

As further indication of the ongoing nature of God’s work for Jewish people, the apostle Paul teaches their relationship to circumcision and the Old Testament as an advantage (Romans 3:1–2). He also refers to their connection to the covenants of promise in contrast to Gentiles (Ephesians 2:12). Even in this new era when ethnic distinctions between Jewish and Gentile believers no longer apply (Galatians 3:28), only Jewish people enjoyed continuity with God’s previous promises expressed in the Old Testament covenants. For Jewish believers, the gospel was further indication of God’s favor toward them, albeit with a different focus distinct from national promises yet to be realized.

Gentiles: Fully Included

How do Gentiles fit into God’s plan for redemption from a Jewish perspective? Peter also had the privilege of preaching to a Gentile audience in Caesarea (Acts 10). God prepared him to accept Cornelius’s request to visit his home and speak to his household (vv. 9–16). This was necessary because Peter retained his Jewish abhorrence of relationships with Gentiles (v. 28). This indicates that Jewish believers understood the gospel was God’s ongoing blessing for them, but not so for Gentiles. Thankfully, Peter learned God shows no partiality and went to Cornelius, spoke to his household, and experienced God’s salvific work among them (vv. 34–48). In his renewed perspective, he still mentioned that the message was sent to Israel ( v. 36), retaining its connection to this new work. When Peter returned to Jerusalem, he needed to explain his ministry to Gentiles because of criticism by the circumcision party, which again indicated the belief that Jewish people were included as chosen beneficiaries of the gospel and solely so for this party.

Samaritans, a group with mixed ethnic identity of Jew and Gentile, had a similar problem with Jewish acceptance as included in God’s blessing. When Philip preached to them with significant response (8:4–14), his ministry needed verification by the apostles at Jerusalem. God ensured these new believers were regarded as fully included as members of the church in the sending of Peter and John from Jerusalem, by whose agency the Samaritan believers received the Holy Spirit (vv. 14–17). God provided a sure sign of His full acceptance of these believers, which protected the unity of the church and prevented division on ethnic grounds.

These various events indicate that Jewish believers, including the apostles, still considered the Jewish people as those chosen by God for blessing. Covenant promises made to Abraham, then Isaac and Jacob, as well as David and Solomon, along with the prophecies for Israel provided the foundation for Jewish believers to welcome Jesus as their Messiah and the blessings available in Him. This did potentially create a barrier for acceptance of non-Jewish believers, which God addressed through the experiences of the apostles and others.

Reaching Gentiles Where They Were

God called Saul of Tarsus, later identified as the apostle Paul, to reach Gentiles with the gospel (9:15). Paul did not ignore the need of Jewish people and often preached to them first before going to Gentiles (13:5, 14, 44–47; 14:1; 17:2; 18:4–6), but his primary calling was Gentiles. Interestingly, when Paul spoke to Jewish audiences, he used the Old Testament to support the gospel message in a similar manner to Peter (13:15–41). Once again, Paul considered Jewish people as privileged to receive God’s blessing as a continuation of promises made to previous generations. 

When speaking to Gentiles, his method of communication changed to suit their context, best illustrated by his message in Athens (17:22–34). Having no connection to the Old Testament, Paul used a local idol, “the unknown god,” to bridge the gap between them and the message of the gospel (v. 23). He also referred to their literature (v. 28), as he revealed God’s requirement of repentance to escape judgment (v. 30). The Gentile hearers previously labeled Paul’s communication as a “new teaching” and “some strange things” (vv. 19–20), which prompted the invitation to communicate further.

For all these Gentiles, the gospel was a new revelation of God’s blessing in the person of Jesus.

The response was varied with some mocking Paul’s mention of resurrection from the dead, others wanting to hear more and some believing the message, joining Paul (vv. 32–34). For all these Gentiles, the gospel was a new revelation of God’s blessing in the person of Jesus. Paul explains this new revelation with respect to Gentiles in his letter to the Ephesians. He calls it a mystery now made known that “Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel” (Ephesians 3:6). In this new era of redemptive history, Gentile believers are blessed as much as Jewish believers.

A Difference in Responses

Perhaps the revelation of inclusion in God’s redemptive program was more attractive to Gentiles than Jews, who already saw themselves as God’s Chosen People, because it offered them a relationship with God and all that came with it. Certainly, Paul experienced an increasingly hostile reaction from Jewish people on his missionary journeys and a warmer welcome from Gentiles in many places. His letters to churches indicate a large Gentile proportion among the believers as the gospel impacted various localities, such as Thessalonica (1 Thessalonians 1:9).

Sadly, Jewish response to this incredible message of God’s provision in Jesus their Messiah diminished over time so that the church became mostly Gentile in membership. This shift in demographic flipped the perspective of Gentile believers to consider themselves the sole beneficiaries of the gospel, excluding Jewish people, just as previously Jewish people had excluded Gentiles. Gentile believers sought to find continuity in the Old Testament by replacing Israel with the church even in that context, rather than retaining the clear connection with God’s Chosen People, Israel.

The gospel message was the same for all people, but its relevance was different according to one’s connection with the Old Testament. Jewish people had continuity with the Old Testament, whereas Gentiles did not. This did not mean Gentiles were not included, as even Jesus pointed out in the provision for a Sidonian widow and the healing of a Syrian general, Naaman, in the Old Testament era (Luke 4:25–27). It does mean understanding our place in redemptive history makes a difference. The identity of our audience is important, and we should keep that in mind as we proclaim the gospel today.

About the Author

Today Christians believe Jesus is the Son of God and the Messiah of Israel. We believe He fulfilled all the Messianic requirements of the Old Testament, proving He was the long-awaited Savior spoken of in biblical prophecy. But in His day, Jesus was rejected by many of His own people.

The crucifixion of Jesus was a clear indication that the Jewish leaders rejected His claim as their long-awaited Messiah—despite compelling evidence that He was. The miracles Jesus performed, the depth of wisdom He displayed, His concern for the poor and oppressed, and the testimony of those closest to Him confirmed He was the Messiah. How then could the Jewish leaders fail to recognize He was who He said He was? What informed that rejection? Was it ignorance, prejudice, misconceptions, threat to their position, or something else?

Was He a King…

To answer such questions, first we need to grasp the picture of Israel’s Messiah from the Old Testament and then consider Jewish expectations of their promised Messiah in Roman times. As far back as the Garden of Eden, God promised a male descendant of Eve (and Adam) would defeat Satan (Genesis 3:15), which requires he possesses power and authority greater than Satan. Jacob later prophesied: “The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples” (49:10, ESV). The Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint (LXX)¹, translated “scepter” as “ruler” and “ruler’s staff” as “prince,” which transferred the objects to the possessor, making them a person. This type of translation of meaning was true of a number of Old Testament passages, which indicates that later Jewish scholars understood these passages as referring to the Messiah, adding a royal dimension, as well as other aspects to his identity.

Regal identity was enhanced by the Davidic Covenant in which God promised David a future son would reign over Israel forever (2 Samuel 7:11–17), which included rest from all enemies. Such a reign implied the subjugation of those enemies and thus presented the image of a conquering king. The prophet Isaiah described this future king as “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (9:6, ESV), which adds another dimension to his identity as more than merely human. Isaiah also describes this coming king as “a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots” (11:1, ESV) and further states that he will “strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked” (11:4, ESV). Jeremiah also affirms the Messiah as a reigning King, a righteous Branch from the Davidic line, executing justice (23:5–6; cf. 33:15–16). When combined these passages portray a powerful, all-conquering king who will defeat every enemy and restore Israel to its rightful place as God’s people dwelling in security and prosperity.

…Or a Servant?

This, however, is not the only picture the Old Testament provides of the promised Messiah. As early as Genesis 3:15, we have indication that the Messiah would suffer a bruised heel to defeat Satan. Later passages are clearer and more dramatic in their description of Messiah’s sufferings. The most detailed one is Isaiah 52:13—53:12, which speaks of Messiah’s death on behalf of transgressors. Isaiah also mentions the afflictions of beating, pulled beard, and spitting (50:6), as Messiah’s ill treatment in obedience to God’s will. Psalm 22 is a Messianic psalm portraying His future sufferings, including details consistent with death by crucifixion, which was unknown at the time. Daniel prophesied of the death of Messiah in the revelation of 70 weeks concerning Israel, given to him after confessing Israel’s grievous sins against God (Daniel 9:26). Zechariah prophesied of Israel’s response to the coming Messiah and identified Him as “pierced,” which again confirms His inevitable death (Zechariah 12:10).

Two conflicting biblical portrayals of the future Messiah created a challenge in understanding how they could both be true in the one person.

Two conflicting biblical portrayals of the future Messiah created a challenge in understanding how they could both be true in the one person, especially when considered as occurring at the same point of time. It would be easy to accept one and reject the other, and the most attractive option was the conquering king rather than the suffering servant. The dominant theme of the Old Testament description of the future Messiah is a conquering king, which included being a powerful political ruler restoring Israel to former glory. For a Jewish reader especially, this picture overshadowed the other image of a suffering servant, and as we’ll see, it obscured it entirely.

The Jewish Perspective

Now that we have a brief summary of the Old Testament portrait of the future Messiah, we can consider the record of Jewish expectation of this Messiah. Edersheim states that Eastern and Western Judaism both held the hope of a return to the land and the restoration of Israel’s kingdom.² Talmudic writings and some works considered Pseudepigrapha—writings with false authorship such as the Book of Enoch, the Sibylline Oracles, and the Psalms of Solomon—describe the rebuilding of the Temple, restoration of the dispersed Jewish population, and Israel’s glory as integral to the Messiah’s coming.³

Jewish expectations of the Messiah in the time of Jesus focused on the coming of a conquering king.

The Targums (Aramaic translations of the Old Testament) have more than 70 references to Messiah building a powerful picture of a Davidic king restoring Israel in all aspects.⁴ The Dead Sea Scrolls provide an interesting interpretation of Isaiah 11:1–5, identifying the “branch” as Messiah, who destroys Israel’s enemies, the Romans, even killing their king. The Qumran community who produced these scrolls also expected one of their leaders to be the Messiah.⁵ 

Little to no reference is made of a suffering servant throughout these writings, and therefore we can assume that Jewish expectations of the Messiah in the time of Jesus focused on the coming of a conquering king. When Jesus appeared in Galilee proclaiming the Kingdom of God is at hand (Mark 1:14), suddenly the Jewish people, especially their leaders, had to decide who He was. Could Jesus be their promised Messiah, or was He an impostor?

A Skeptical Perception

Initially, some of their expectations seemed to match His activity. Jesus was a miracle worker, possessing authority over demons, disease, and even death. Jesus was a teacher of extraordinary wisdom and insight. Jesus focused on the nation of Israel and seemed to offer a better future. The general populace heralded Him as their Messiah as He entered Jerusalem (Matthew 21:1–11; Mark 11:1–11; John 12:12–19), but this was short-lived. A small band of followers genuinely recognized Him as the Messiah, but even they expected a conquering king who would vanquish the Romans and were shocked when Jesus was crucified, fearing for their own lives (John 20:19). 

Throughout His ministry, the Jewish leaders questioned Jesus to find fault with Him. They did not accept His credentials as their Messiah, primarily because He did not fit in with their rules, especially concerning the Sabbath, and He threatened their position of power. Finally, they orchestrated Jesus’ death at the hands of the Romans to get rid of Him (John 18—19). Little did they realize their wicked plan would provide the pathway for Jesus to be a conquering King, though it did not fit their expectations. In His death on the cross, Jesus conquered Satan, dealt with sin’s penalty, and opened the way into God’s presence. His resurrection would also demonstrate that Jesus defeated death, the final enemy, and paved the way for His future return as the conquering King revealed in the Old Testament.

Rejected Royalty

Quite remarkable is the shift in the populace’s reaction to Jesus when He is presented to them by Pilate (Matthew 27:15–23; John 19:14–16). Just days earlier they hailed Him as the Messiah; now they called for His crucifixion. No doubt the Jewish leaders had influenced the crowd to reject Jesus, but it cannot be ignored that failing to overthrow the Roman occupation would have factored into their response. Rather than seeing a triumphant King, they saw a severely beaten man (Matthew 26:67; Mark 14:65; Luke 22:63), who was then scourged with a multi-lashed whip imbedded with pieces of bone and metal (Matthew 27:26; Mark 15:15; John 19:1).

Jesus’ non-resistance contradicted their expectations of Messiah and convinced them that He was not the one promised in the Old Testament.

In choosing Barabbas, the crowd clearly demonstrated that their expectation was a leader who would defy Roman authority (Matthew 27:15–21; Mark 15:7). Jesus’ non-resistance contradicted their expectations of Messiah and convinced them that He was not the one promised in the Old Testament. Yet, the opposite was true. Jesus fulfilled the many prophecies concerning Messiah as the suffering servant, and His cruel treatment by the Jewish leaders and Roman authority was according to God’s redemptive plan.

The apostle Peter captured this reality in his first sermon on the day of Pentecost. He confronted the Jewish audience with these powerful words:

Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know—this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men (Acts 2:22–24, ESV).

This Easter, I hope you will not make the same mistake. Rather, welcome Jesus as the true Messiah and receive salvation in Him.

Endnotes
¹ The Septuagint was produced several centuries before the coming of Jesus Christ and so gives some insight as to Jewish understanding of Messiah in that earlier time.
² A. Edersheim. The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah (Complete and Unabridged in One Volume, New Updated Edition). Hendrickson Publishers, 1993. Pages 53-57.
³ Glenn Miller. Messianic Expectations in First Century Judaism. www.christian-thinktank.com/messiah.html (christian-thinktank.com). accessed 4th February 2021
⁴ S. H. Levey. The Messiah: An Aramaic Interpretation, Monograph of the Hebrew Union College, 2: Cincinnati: 1974.
⁵ C. A. Evans. A Closer Look: Messianic Expectations. The Exchange. A Blog by Ed Stetzer (christianitytoday.com), accessed 4th Feb 2021

About the Author

I read about it all the time: Knockers of the Rapture consider it a false doctrine satisfying the Christian’s longing to escape the world and all its problems. “Beam me up, Jesus! It’s a mess here, and I want out.”

Jürgen Moltmann, the renowned Reformed theologian, once critiqued the Left Behind series, and he wrote, “The pious dream of rapture contains a resignation that abandons this earth to destruction …. A God who only waits to rapture Christian crews … cannot be a God whom one can trust.”

I have great respect for Moltmann, but we disagree on what Paul called the “blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). 

How the Thessalonians Understood the Rapture

For starters, the word rapture (rapturo) is biblical. It is the Latin translation of the Greek word harpazo found in 1 Thessalonians 4:17, which means “to be caught up.” 

Paul was writing believers in Thessalonica to encourage their faith, that is, that they haven’t missed the completion of their salvation, the resurrection of their bodies.  

The resurrection of the dead raised more questions than bodies.

I’m sure there was confusion at this time in the early church. Paul was addressing this issue 20 years after the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus. Christ hadn’t returned and Christians were dying. I’m sure the Thessalonians were wondering, “Did we miss something? How will God raise the bodies of those who were buried, or worse, burned or drowned?” The resurrection of the dead raised more questions than bodies. It’s a question many believers have today, 2,000 years later.

Paul gently assured his brothers and sisters that Christ is still coming for both those who have passed and those who are alive! And when He comes, the dead will rise first (1 Thessalonians 4:16), then the living will be “caught up” (raptured) to meet the Lord in the air!

Now, earlier in his letter Paul reminded the beleaguered that their destiny isn’t to endure the divine wrath that’s coming (1:10), when God pours out His judgment on mankind (5:2, 3). Instead, our hope is in His return! 

How We Understand the Rapture

For those who believe in the Rapture of the church, our calling isn’t to escape, but to wait. We’re to wait for His coming as all His creation has been eagerly longing (Romans 8:19). 

For those who believe in the Rapture of the church, our calling isn’t to escape, but to wait.

Is it wrong to long for His coming? Should we feel guilty for expressing our desire to hear the “trumpet of God” (1 Thessalonians 4:16)? I certainly don’t think so.

When Paul wrote Titus about our “blessed hope,” he said we’re “waiting” for His glorious appearance. The “waiting” Paul describes is the same “waiting” my children expressed on Christmas morning when they violently shook my wife and me from sleep long before dawn, only to find out if now was the appropriate time to open the gifts that awaited them under the tree. 

“No!” I told them. “It’s only 4:30 a.m.! Go back to bed.” 

At 5:00 a.m. they returned, “Can we go downstairs now?” 

“No!” I replied. “Bed, now!” 

Their commitment to rip open their Christmas loot continued until we knew there was no stopping them. So, at 5:45 a.m., we made our not-so glorious appearance. My kids weren’t looking to escape; quite the opposite, they were anxious to receive what they had waited weeks to experience.

Christians who long for the Rapture aren’t pious Houdinis frantically searching for their escape hatch. Instead, we’re Christians confidently waiting with eager expectation for the completion of our redemption, just as Paul, the apostles, and the rest of faithful believers have for centuries. 

God’s promise to resurrect believers who have gone before us and transition those who are still alive is the greatest gift we have coming, so of course, we’re excited. We should be—it’s in our spiritual DNA. So let us wait eagerly together, let us not waste what time we have, and let us pray as the apostle John did at the end of Revelation: “Come, Lord Jesus!” (22:20).

About the Author